WASHINGTON — A Maryland man is accused of driving around the area armed, and allegedly was seen enforcing laws while impersonating a federal immigration agent.
Allegations against Itai Ozderman, 35, of Gaithersburg were filed Monday in Montgomery County District Court. According to multiple sources, he faces pending federal charges as well.
Per court documents, Ozderman was seen wearing a ballistic vest with an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) placard across his chest. He was also seen wearing a Baltimore County police badge, the documents said.
Falls Church, Virginia police asked the FBI in October to assist in its investigation into Ozderman.
In a raid of his home on Feb. 22, authorities found 10 guns, including two assault rifles and one loaded handgun in a car registered to his father, court documents outline. The search also turned up body armor tactical vests, ammunition and a working police radio.
After his arrest, Ozderman told police he had driven to Virginia and back with a loaded weapon and confirmed he was not in law enforcement, the documents said. (Maryland prohibits transportation of a handgun on a state highway, waterway, airway, or road or parking lot.)
On Monday, Ozderman’s attorney told the Washington Post that his client, who works for that news organization in IT, had been suspended.
The lawyer, Thomas Degonia, told the Post that the weapons were “purchased and possessed legally.” And in regards to the allegations of impersonating law enforcement, he told the Post that “at this point, these are allegations, and he enjoys the presumption of innocence.”
Degonia failed to respond to WTOP’s request for comments.
The FBI confirmed its involvement in the case.
Ozderman appears next month on the a Montgomery County courtroom on the firearms and impersonation charge.
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